Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1887-07-28
WASHINGTON.
The Status OF No-Man's Land
Dissatisfied Settlers-No
Remedy.
The Interstate Commission Waking
Up Express COmpanies-Swamp
Land Patents.
The Emperor Of Germany Sends Money
and Valuables to Brave Men in Vir-
ginia.

WASHINGTON, July 2O.-A petition signed
by ten residentssof Mineral City, which is
on the neutral slip known as No-Man's-
Land, lying south OF Kansas, has been re-
ceived deprecating the Presidents failure
to sign the bill passed by both Houses OF
Congress at the last session annexing No
Man's-Land to the State Of Kansas. Inc
petitioners represent that for years past
that country has been monopoliZed by large
and influential cattle companies, many OF
them foreign corporations, which have
fenced on for their own purposes thousands
OF acres of valuable land, and whose every
aim is to keep out honest and hard-worklnR
farmers. The petition states that from
twenty to thirty families are daily enter
ing the strip and locating, building
homes and breaking ground for crops.
Railroads are making surveys and some
of them are about commencing to grade;
towns are springing up, and people
spending their money IN building, and yet
they can not get a title to the ground they
are building upon; while business Is I'M
peded because trade is unprotected. The
petitioners ask that their statements be
investigated and such action taken as Will
best protect them in their rights.
In reply to q letter from a cattle owner
on the tract known as No-Man's-Lan ask
ing whether portion of the herders oc-
cupying that land can form an organization
and adopt a herd law to govern the free
range men, Land Commissioner Sparks
states that no person, organization or as
sociation has any right or color of author
ity to make herd or other regulations in re-
spect to the occupation Of lands in the pub
lie land strip. These are public lands of
the United States" he continues, land
never have been made subject to the law
full occupation or entry under any Of the
public land laws and / have heretofore
recommended the employment Of the mill
tary forces to remove occupants therefroM
who are not actual settlers, or who are
using or controlling more than one hundred
and sixty acres"
WAKING UP EXPRESS COMPANIES.
WASHINGTON, July 20.-But three Of the
express companies doing business in this
country have as yet filed their schedules Of
rates with the Interstate Commission. To
the others the following letter was sent to-
day by Secretary Moseley: 1.-THE Commits
sion has observed your failure to comply
with the requirements of section of the
act OF Congress approved February 4, 1887,
entitled AN act to regulate commerce. In
view of the time which has elapsed since
the law went into effect, it is obvious that
this failure on your part is intended and
not merely inadvertent- The reasons for
the course taken by your company have
not as yet been laid before the Commission,
and 1T has not as yet entertained consid-
Grafton Of the question whether or not ex-
press companies are common carriers sub
ject to the provisions of said act, further
than to say on April 4, 1887, in answer to an
inquiry by the Canadian Express Company,
that until hearing upon the subject is
asked for, it will assume that the law does
apply to such companies. The COMMISSION
is now ready to act definitely on this sub
1ect. Your company is, therefore, notified
and requested to comply with the provis-
ions of said section forthwith. Should you
desire to be heard upon the matter, the
Commission, before final action, will enter
tain the consideration of q written or
printed argument if filed within thirty
days, provided you give US notice at once
OF your intention to do So"
SWAMP LANDS.
WASHINGTON, July 20.-The Secretary OF
the Interior has directed Land Commits.
sioner Sparks to issue patents to the State
of Minnesota for certain swamp and over
flowed lands in the Duluth, Mimi. land
district, which the latter has suspended
because of the ALLEGATIONS of gross errors
and frauds" The Secretary states that no
evidence supporting these charges have
been furnished except as to townships 81
and 81. The surveyor of these townships
certifies that he does not believe that his
field notes were ever turned over to the
Surveyor General, but that false and fraud
surveyor further states that the land rep
resented as swamp is the only valuable
land in these townships. The Secretary is
of the opinion that this evidenced is sufficient
to warrant an investigation which he di-
reefs to be made at once pending the issue
of patents to the lands in those townships
REWARD FOR BRAVERY.
WASHINGTON, July 2O.-The Secretary of
State has received through the German
Minister at Washington from the Emperor
of Germany a check for $1,000 and two
handsome gold watches embellished with
the likeness and monogram of the Emperor
with request that the money be divided
equally among the families of the five men,
bers of the life saving crew at Damneck
Mills station, Va, who lost their lives in
attempting to rescue the crew of the Ger
man ship Elizabeth, January s, and that the
watches be presented to Frank Tedford and
Joseph E. Etheridge, the only survivors of
the crew. The money and watches have
been turned over to General Superinten-
dent Kimball for distribution.
Mrs. IanEfry.